Title: Dangling in the Tournefortia
Author: Charles Bukowski
Type: Poetry
Page Count/Review Word Count: 288
Rating: 4*/5
Charles Bukowski – Dangling in the Tournefortia
It’s always difficult to review a Charles Bukowski book, because they usually leave me feeling somewhat stunned. It’s like being assaulted by words and beat around the head until you get to the final page and realise it’s left you with a minor concussion. But that’s a good thing – Bukowski truly had a way with words, and in many ways he’s at his best here. Although equally, it’s hard to recommend any one of his poetry books above another.
That’s because each of Bukowski’s collections has a sort of soul of its own, and this one has an older soul to go with the age of the man who wrote it. That’s not to say that he avoids any of his traditional subjects, though – women, booze and horses are out in force here. But he does look at them with the advantage of age, and it’s interesting to see how that changes his opinion on things over time.
Overall though, this is just a rock solid poetry collection with some incredible chunks of wisdom on offer. You know what you’re getting with a Bukowski book – if you’ve read one before, that is – and this is a pretty typical example. Because of that, it’s not a bad collection to start with, especially because if anything, he’s a little tamer here. It reads like the collection of a man who’s finally coming to terms with his life, which in many ways, it is. That means it’s not always easy to read, but it is always sublime, and it’s entertaining along the way too. Give it a go!
Charles Bukowski
